The beginning of the school year is always associated with an increase in infectious diseases because children spend more time indoors, interact closely, and all this creates favorable conditions for the spread of various infections, which vaccines protect against. Specialists remind – if any vaccine was missed, it can be “caught up” – you just need to contact the child’s doctor, who will assess the vaccination history and create an individual vaccination plan.
Which vaccines are for preschool children?
For preschool children, according to the Republic of Lithuania’s children’s preventive vaccination calendar (Calendar), the most important vaccines are given during the first two years of life. By 18 months, children are vaccinated against hepatitis B, tuberculosis, whooping cough, diphtheria, tetanus, poliomyelitis, type B Haemophilus influenzae infection, pneumococcal infection, measles, mumps, and rubella.
“In kindergarten groups, children spend a lot of time interacting closely, so infections can spread very quickly here. Vaccines are the main tool that helps protect the child from diseases and reduce the risk of their spread in the group. Therefore, when a child starts attending kindergarten, it is important to check whether they have received all age-appropriate vaccines. This is relevant not only for the little ones just starting kindergarten but also for children attending for the second or third year – if they were not vaccinated on time, we encourage contacting a doctor to discuss an individual vaccination schedule to keep the child safe in kindergarten,” explains Rasa Liausėdienė, advisor of the Infectious Diseases Management Department at NVSC.
Which vaccines are for schoolchildren?
For school-age children, important vaccines are given at ages 6–7, 11, and 15–16 years.
According to the Calendar, children aged 6–7 years are revaccinated against whooping cough, diphtheria, tetanus, and poliomyelitis, as well as measles, mumps, and rubella. We remind that all 6–7-year-old children are also recommended to have a tuberculin test (Mantoux test), which helps detect infection with tuberculosis mycobacteria.
11-year-old children are also vaccinated against human papillomavirus (HPV).
We remind that HPV is a very common virus that can cause various diseases, including precancerous changes and cancer. In women, it can cause cervical, vaginal, and external genital cancers; in men, anal and penile cancers. In both sexes, HPV infection is also associated with cancers of the mouth, throat, larynx, base of the tongue, tonsils, and salivary glands.
“The HPV vaccine is most effective when given at a young age, before contact with the virus. Therefore, it is important not to delay and take the opportunity to protect your child from HPV-related diseases. It is also important to remember that vaccination is important for both girls and boys,” reminds Rasa Liausėdienė.
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Adolescents aged 15–16 years are revaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus, and whooping cough.
Vaccines protect not only the child
Vaccination remains one of the most effective measures protecting people from vaccine-preventable infectious diseases and their complications. By vaccinating children according to the Calendar, parents protect not only their children but also contribute to community resistance to infectious diseases. As vaccination coverage decreases, the number of people without sufficient protection against certain infections increases, thus increasing the risk of diseases and outbreaks. It should be noted that not all people can be vaccinated due to health conditions. Therefore, sufficient herd immunity helps protect those community members for whom infections can be especially dangerous.
“Vaccines are not always given exactly according to the schedule in the Calendar – illness, other reasons, or simply a missed visit can interfere. However, this does not mean that vaccination needs to be started over or that it is too late to vaccinate. If, for various reasons, a child was not vaccinated according to the Calendar, vaccination can be started or continued later. In such cases, it is necessary to contact the child’s doctor – an individual vaccination plan will be created to ensure the necessary protection,” reminds the NVSC representative.
More information about children’s vaccination can be found here: https://nvsc.lrv.lt/lt/vaikai/
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